ENB:09:39
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OPENING PLENARY
The President led delegates in a minute of silence in memory of the late Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. Representatives from India, Cameroon, Zimbabwe, Belarus, Slovakia, Canada and the United Kingdom were elected to the Bureau. Antigua and Barbuda and Colombia were later elected. Delegates adopted the provisional agenda (UNEP/CBD/COP/2/1) and the provisional organization of work (UNEP/CBD/COP/2/1/Add.2).
The Chair of the African Regional Meeting on the CBD, held in Pretoria, South Africa on 9-10 October 1995, presented the Pretoria Declaration that: urges African States to ratify the CBD; suggests that funding decisions based on consensus voting will undermine African States; calls for early operation of the clearing-house mechanism (CHM); calls upon COP-2 to adopt a medium-term programme of action to strengthen national capacities of African States under the CBD; and requests a second African regional meeting before COP-3.
The Chair of the Latin America and Caribbean Regional Meeting on the CBD, held in Buenos Aires, Argentina on 18-19 October 1995, summarized a report that: calls for early operation of the CHM with funding in the 1996-1997 budget; urges COP-2 to adopt the recommendations of the first SBSTTA meeting on Article 16 and on the biosafety protocol; and reaffirms the importance of marine and coastal biodiversity and of the International Coral Reef Initiative. The report endorses the SBSTTA recommendations on an ecosystem approach to conservation.
The Chair of the Asian Regional Meeting on the CBD, held in Jakarta, Indonesia on 4-5 November 1995, suggested that national biodiversity strategies will be the centerpiece of Parties' obligations under the CBD, and requested a report from the COP on national experiences with sustainable use.
The report of the first meeting of the SBSTTA was presented by its Chair, J.H. Seyani (Malawi). He highlighted several key recommendations (as contained in UNEP/CBD/COP/2/5) for consideration by COP-2 on the modus operandi of SBSTTA and its medium-term programme of work (1995-97), as well as substantive matters relating to the components of biodiversity particularly under threat, technology transfer, national reports, and marine and coastal biological diversity.
Mohamed T. El-Ashry, Chair of the GEF, reported on GEF biodiversity projects, and noted that they are consistent with COP instructions. He referred delegates to the Report of the Global Environmental Facility (UNEP/CBD/COP/2/8). He noted that the draft Memorandum of Understanding is an example of collaboration between the GEF and CBD Secretariats.
In her capacity as COP-1 President, Dr. Dumont reported on the outcome of the third session of the Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) (UNEP/CBD/COP/2/Inf.4). She noted that the CSD welcomed the statement of COP-1 and recognized that the CBD is the principle mechanism for biodiversity protection.
A summary of recommendations to COP-2 from the third Global Biodiversity Forum (GBF), which was held on 5-6 November 1995 in Jakarta and attended by 400 representatives from NGOs, governments and business, covered four topics: marine biodiversity, access to genetic resources, decentralization of conservation governance, and forests and biodiversity.
The Executive Secretary presented the report on the administration of the Convention (UNEP/CBD/COP/2/15/Corr.1), which is a standing item of COP-1's decision I/9 on its medium-term programme of work. The report contains two main parts (implementation of COP-1 decisions I/4 and I/5 regarding the Permanent Secretariat and relationship with other relevant bodies and international organizations) and three annexes (contribution of Parties to the CBD Trust Fund as of 31 August 1995 and updated in a corrigendum on 30 September 1995; voluntary contributions to the Secretariat; and a list of documents prepared by the Secretariat since COP-1).
Japan, followed by Sweden, Australia and Malaysia, noted paragraphs 40 and 41 regarding the designation by the Interagency Task Force on Forests of the CBD Secretariat as the lead agency to address the relationship between indigenous peoples and forests. Several governments questioned the propriety of UN agencies assigning duties to a convention secretariat. They also expressed concern that some agencies (UNESCO and FAO) have yet to fulfill a commitment to second staff to the Secretariat for the purpose of fulfilling that mandate. Brazil and Austria noted that a task force headed by the Secretariat is not inconsistent with the CBD's objectives. Australia, followed by Sweden and Mauritius, expressed concern about overloading Secretariat staff, and urged all Parties to pay arrears and 1996 dues promptly.
In addressing these concerns, the Secretariat noted that when the Intergovernmental Panel of Forests (IPF) was established, all relevant international agencies were called on to service the Panel, including the CBD Secretariat. Each organization assumed a responsibility based on its expertise. The responsibility for coordinating with other organizations on issues related to indigenous people and forests was given to the Secretariat of the CBD. The Secretariat stressed that the COP is the sovereign body for guidance on all policy issues. Dr. Juma suggested that the COP discuss how to guide the work of the Secretariat during the intersessional period.